‘Blackmailer’ behind bars

A 28-year-old accountant was arrested following an entrapment operation after a woman he met on a dating application reported that he threatened to post an intimate video of her online unless she met with him again.

Police identified the suspect as a resident of Pasay City.

The 19-year-old complainant, identified by police under the alias Jam, told investigators that the suspect initially contacted her on 31 August, offering money in exchange for a meeting at his condo unit.

According to a police report, the two met at the suspect's residence on 2 September. The complainant stated that they drank alcohol and engaged in a consensual encounter after agreeing on a payment of P50,000.

The suspect paid a portion of the amount and promised to settle the remaining P30,000 during a future meeting.

After returning home that evening, the complainant received messages containing photos of them inside the unit. She accused the suspect of secretly recording their encounter without her consent.

Between 5 and 9 September, the complainant received repeated threats from the suspect, who claimed he would release the video on social media and ruin her reputation if she refused to return to his apartment.

The victim reported the harassment to the Manila Police District’s Barbosa Police Station.

Investigators from the Barbosa station, in coordination with the Pasay City Police Station, launched an entrapment operation at the suspect’s residence that resulted in his arrest.